Water-in-oil polishes containing a wax constituent in combination with an emulsifier are well known in the art. In U.S. Pat. No. 3,847,622 to Brandl, which contains a wax component in addition to a solvent, an emulsifier, a lubricant, and water, the wax component comprises from 0.1 to 3.0% by weight of the composition, and is a montan or lignite wax having an acid value of 90 to 160, preferably 100 to 130. The emulsifier may be sorbitan sesquioleate, tall oil alkanolamides, polyglyceroleate, or the reaction product of morpholine-2-amino-2- methyl-1-propanol or methoxypropylamine and a fatty acid such as oleic or stearic acid, or montanic acid, the emulsifier being present in an effective amount, e.g., from 0.25 to 3.0% by weight of the composition. An organopolysiloxane, e.g., a dimethyl polysiloxane, in the amount of from 0.5 to 9% by weight, having a viscosity of from 20 to 15,000 cs. at 25.degree. C. is included to enhance the polishing character of the composition, and to provide lubricity. Preferably, the polysiloxane is a mixture of two polysiloxanes, one having a viscosity of 50 to 550 cs. and the other having a viscosity of 950 to 15,000 cs. The organic solvent has an aniline point of from -22.degree. to 185.degree. F., and may be a hydrocarbon, preferably an isoparaffinic hydrocarbon, or a chloro-substituted hydrocarbon.
Another example of a wax-containing polish composition is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 3,929,492 to Chapman, said composition containing from 0.1 to 5% wax, 0.5 to 10% organic polysiloxane, water and propellant. The wax constituent is any predominantly hydrocarbon aliphatic material of high molecular weight, including natural and synthetic waxes, ester-type waxes, for example, candelilla wax, carnauba wax, microcrystalline wax, petroleum wax, and synthetic resinous materials such as polyethylene and polypropylene. Emulsifiers are preferably incorporated into the Chapman composition, for example, longchain, fatty acid esters of polyhydroxylic compounds, such as the glycol, glycerol and sorbitol esters of oleic, stearic palmitic and lauric acids, ethoxylated fatty acids and amides, e.g., sorbitan monooleate. Also includable are nonionic emulsifiers such as polyethylene oxide adducts.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,395,028 to Mackles discloses an aerosol wax and silicone oil furniture polish which is a double emulsion consisting of a water-in-oil emulsion in which the outer oil phase contains the organic solvent and wax, and the inner-water phase has emulsified therein the silicone oil, the wax of the Mackles composition being microcrystalline wax, oxidized microcrystalline wax, paraffin wax, carnauba wax, beeswax, ceresin wax, and the like. The emulsifier in the Mackles composition may be sorbitan sesquioleate, tall oil alkanolamides, polyglycerol oleate, etc., usually present in the amount of 0.25 to 5.0% by weight of the total composition.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,393,078 to Lockhart, et al, discloses a wax-containing metal polish composition, the composition containing 1 to 10% microcrystalline wax and 1 to 15% montan wax having an acid value of 90 to 160. The emulsifiers suitable for incorporation into the Lockhart, et al, composition are those mentioned by Brandl, U.S. Pat. No. 3,847,622, above. However, in Lockhart at least part of the montan wax constituent is in the form of an oxidized montan wax-containing morpholine montanate groups resulting from the in situ reaction product of at least a part of the acid groups obtained by oxidation of the montan wax with morpholine or other amine, which constituent contributes to the emulsification of the composition.
A self-spraying wax composition is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 2,907,664 to Schoenholz, et al, which is an oil-in-water emulsion-type polish, and may contain as an example of a wax Gersthofen OP, a wax derived from montan wax, described as a mixture of the butylene glycol ester of montanic acid and calcium montanate. Amine soap, borax, sorbitan fatty esters, etc., are the designated emulsifiers.
Also of interest as disclosing wax-containing polish compositions are U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,013,475 to Liebowitz, et al, 4,265,663 to Gilcinski, et al, and 3,836,371 to Kokoszka.
In all of the above wax-containing compositions, the wax must be dissolved/dispersed in one or both of the liquid phases. Also, in all of the above compositions, emulsifiers are used to couple the water and oil phases. The emulsifier is not typically an active polishing aid, but rather detracts from the desired polishing end benefit because the emulsifier is codeposited onto the surface during use along with the wax. It is known that as the concentration of conventional emulsifiers increases, polish performance with respect to gloss and resistance to smears decreases. Hence, the elimination or the substantial reduction in the level of these conventional emulsifiers included in the polish composition or by utilizing a material that functions as both an active polishing ingredient and an emulsifier is desirable.
Some of the patented compositions referred to above teach the modification of certain natural waxes, for example, montan wax, to provide such derivative with emulsifiers properties. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,847,622 to Brandl and 3,393,078 to Lockhart, et al, disclose reaction products of an amine and oxidized montanic wax.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,782,124, 3,300,321, and 3,437,496, each to Rosenberg, et al, 2,925,349 to Koenig, et al, and 3,143,431, 2,963,379, 3,062,671, 3,053,681 and 3,060,046, each to Kaupp, et al, disclose the esterification of montan waxes so as to modify the hardness and performance in dry-bright polish compositions. Thus, Rosenberg, et al, discloses in the '124 patent the after-esterified oxidation product of crude montan wax in combination with saturated and unsaturated fatty alcohols of long carbon chain lengths, such as monooleates or palmitates or polyoxysorbitan. The ester wax disclosed in the '124 patent is derived from the reaction with low molecular weight polyhydric aliphatic alcohols, such as ethylene glycol, of six carbons, it being inadvisable, according to the teaching of the patent, to use as an alcohol of more than six carbons.
The '321 Rosenberg, et al, patent discloses a process for the manufacture of dry-bright polish emulsions, which compositions incorporate a wax or wax mixture containing an oxidation product of deresinified or underesinified crude montan wax reacted with a low molecular weight polyhydric alcohol, preferably glycols, to form the corresponding ester. These waxes cannot be emulsified alone by the usual processes, but require the reaction product of oleic or other fatty acids with selected amines.
Amine derived emulsifers are also utilized in dry-bright compositions in accordance with the process described in the '496 Rosenberg, et al, patent, wherein an ester wax based upon the reaction product of montan wax and a low molecular weight polyhydric alcohol is again described.
The Koenig, et al, '349 patent also discloses ester waxes esterified with monohydric and polyhydric alcohols, the polyhydric alcohols being glycols of six or fewer carbons, and the monohydric alcohols having between 16 and 30 carbons. Emulsifiers are also incorporated in the composition, and are the addition products of 15-30 moles of ethylene oxide to either saturated or unsaturated fatty alcohols containing 16-20 carbon atoms per molecule.
The '431, '379, '671, and '046 patents to Kaupp, et al, all relate to dry-bright polish waxes, wherein crude montan wax is oxidized and subsequently esterified with monohydric or dihydric alcohols. The '681 patent to Kaupp, et al, discloses an ester based on oxidized montan wax in which the reactant is R[X--(R'--O).sub.n H].sub.m ]Z, wherein R is a cyclic radical, X is nitrogen or oxygen, R' is an alkylene radical of at least 2 carbons, n is from 1 to 12, m is the minimum valance of X less 1, and Z is greater than 1, but less than above 4.
Useful synthetic wax compositions are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,745,033 to Hutchison, the synthetic waxes being substitutes for natural waxes, primarily beeswax, and made by blending high molecular weight .alpha.-branched mono- and dicarboxylic acids with microcrystalline petroleum wax.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,586,780 and 2,646,436 to Breuer disclose treatment of bleached montan wax with a glycol to partially esterify the monocarboxylic acids and to convert a substantial quantity of the dibasic acids to mono-esters and thereafter esterify the remaining free carboxylic groups with a higher polyhydric alcohol containing 3 to 8 hydroxy groups.
Although certain esters of montanic acid waxes have been included in polish compositions, as noted above, in particular in dry-bright polish compositions, these products do not serve to stabilize the emulsion, but are employed for the enhanced ease of dispersibility while providing gloss. All of these compositions require an emulsifier at substantial levels to stabilize the emulsion. We have found that the disadvantages referred to above of including an emulsifier may be avoided by employing as the wax a montan wax ester having a hydrophilic moiety obtained by esterification of montanic acid with a polyethylene glycol, the polyethylene glycol having on average between about 2.5 to about 6.0 ethoxy groups, thereby establishing a material providing both wax characteristics when used in a furniture polish and at the same time providing sufficient water affinity to act as the emulsifier in the polish composition.